That Bleeping Illinois Stole Our Bleeping Title

Illinois, led by its sleaze-bag governor, quite obviously has run away with the distinction as “most corrupt state in the union.” Floridians know better. They can give the Heisman Trophy to some undeserving states, but when it comes to “most corrupt,” we get the trophy. We’ve got the hard numbers from the Department of Justice to back our big talk. As our local sheriff might say, as he exits from federal prison, “It ain’t even close.” The New York Times collected the stats on federal public corruption prosecutions from the Department of Justice, Census Bureau and other sources and added up the number of each state’s convicted public officials from 1998 to 2007. “In a Department of Justice tally covering the last decade, Florida wins by its sheer number of guilty,” the Times concluded.Florida tallied up 824 crooks in public office. That was 120 convicts more than the state coming in second (New York). Famously corrupt Illinois could only manage a piddling 502. Compared to Florida, Illinois is a model of public integrity. Even when the Times broke down the states in “convictions per million residents per year,” Florida is still among the most corrupt per capita states. North Dakota and Sarah Palin’s own Alaska are ranked one and two among the states in this ignominious category. Then come some unseemly states one might expect to lead the list: Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Kentucky, Alabama, Delaware, South Dakota. Then comes sunny Florida. We’re more corrupt per capita or otherwise than notorious addresses like Illinois, New Jersey, Nevada. I can’t wait for the awards ceremony.